Have you ever watched certain colour combinations pop up on your screens, and you just knew which brand’s advertisement it was?
Ever pondered on why these brands stick in your mind like they are glued in there while others fade into obscurity faster than yesterday’s news? It all comes down to one key element: brand consistency.
When a brand consistently serves the same vibe, services, messaging and overall experience every time a customer interacts with it, it builds their trust in an unparalleled way.
However, there's a crucial piece to this puzzle: a competent marketing communications agency. Brands keen on consistency employ these agencies, which are the linchpins in achieving and maintaining that sought-after brand consistency.
So, if you're ready to transform your brand from ordinary to extraordinary, just read along to know all about brand consistency. From basics and importance to benefits and guidance, we have got you covered.
What is Brand Consistency?
The idea of brand consistency is all about keeping all the things of your brand uniform across the board. Think about it as maintaining a consistent identity, feel and message no matter where people interact with you. Whether it is social media handles, advertisements, websites or even live interactions, it is all about ensuring your brand’s look, values, feel, and tone all stay the same.
This ensures that anyone who encounters your brand knows what to expect and remembers it. Eventually, brand consistency can help you build trust and familiarity with your audience, keeping them coming back and engaging repeatedly.
Importance Of Brand Consistency:
In the world of social media, for creating resonance and captivating audiences, ensuring every social media post, email campaign, and advertisement sings harmoniously with your brand's core values and messaging can't be understated.
Research highlights that 65% of a brand’s revenue comes from repeat customers, and 82% solemnly believe retention is more cost-effective than acquisition for them. It can be accomplished through brand consistency. The more consistent your brand is, the more consumers will recognise and trust it.
Fret not! It is easy. If you want your brand to be remembered and have a consistent identity, partnering with a marketing communications agency can be your best bet. They are not just strategic partners. They are the wizards behind the curtain, waving their wands, or really, clicking their mouses to conjure up campaigns that scream YOU.
But before we delve into ways to build and maintain brand consistency with marketing communications agencies, let’s take a quick glance at the benefits of brand consistency:
Benefits Of Brand Consistency:
1. Cultivates Customers’ Trust and Loyalty:
Building and maintaining brand consistency is a surefire way to build trust and loyalty among your target audience. Imagine a TV show that keeps changing its plot line and theme every day. Would you trust its authenticity and watch it with loyalty? No, right? The same is the case with brands. Customers lose interest in brands when they can't maintain a consistent voice and service style across the board.
2. Makes Brands Recognizable and Unforgettable:
Businesses like Starbucks, McDonald’s, and Subway have remained at the top of their game for decades now because of their strict adherence to brand consistency. The red and yellow colour of McDonald’s or the white and green logo and the specific theme of Starbucks are consistent in all their products, advertisements, and even outlets. Brand consistency is what makes their brands unforgettable and all the more reliable.
3. Accelerates Business Growth:
Brand consistency increases sales and revenue growth. Businesses with consistent branding and marketing styles comprehensively grow 20% more and generate 33% greater revenue than businesses with inconsistent and off-brand marketing.
Six Ways to Maintain Brand Consistency with Marketing Communications Agencies
Feeling the buzz around brand consistency now? If you can't wait to dive in and make your mark, here is your roadmap:
1. Craft Your Brand Identity Blueprint
To kickstart your journey towards brand consistency, define your brand guidelines. Outline the core elements that make your brand identity unique, including your values, mission, target audience and target market, and most importantly, visual identity. By that, we mean you need to clearly define:
What your brand logo is or should look like
Your brand’s colour scheme across all channels
Your brand’s preferred font style and website layouts
Your brand’s tone of voice
Your target audience
This will lay the framework for building brand consistency and ensuring that every action and message reflects YOU!
2. Partner with a Trusted Marketing Communications Agency
Next up, it's time to find a partner. Select a trusted marketing communications agency with a proven track record of high-quality work and a sound understanding of your brand’s niche and audience.
It will allow you to leverage their expertise and resources to develop and maintain brand consistency.
3. Communicate Your Brand's Essence Through Clear Guidelines
Once you are done choosing an agency, clearly communicate your brand guidelines and expectations to them. Give them that brand identity blueprint you crafted with documents containing information about your visual assets, messaging guidelines, and preferred communication channels. This will help the agency understand your brand thoroughly and work accordingly.
4. Quantify Your Brand Reach and Impact
Hiring an agency will get your job done in this regard easily, but for optimal results, make sure you monitor your brand's performance regularly. Employ tools like brand tracking surveys, social media analytics, and website metrics to evaluate how effectively your brand is being communicated across various channels. This will also help you discover areas where inconsistencies may be occurring and take proactive steps to address them.
5. Empower and Inform Your External Partners
Empower your marketing communications agency partners by educating them about your brand and inspiring them to uphold its values time and again. Encourage open communication and collaboration to foster a shared vision for your brand.
Bonus Tip:
Craft an outline highlighting specific criteria and standards for maintaining consistency across all brand touchpoints with your agency. Review and update the checklist routinely to ensure it remains relevant and effective.
6. Innovate Hand in Hand with Your Collaborators
Finally, foster a culture of collaboration and innovation with your marketing communications agency. Encourage them to bring fresh ideas and perspectives to the table while remaining true to your brand's identity. By working together creatively, you can develop innovative marketing campaigns that captivate your audience while staying consistent with your brand guidelines.
Final Thoughts:
In the fast-paced digital world of today with ad-laden websites and applications, brand consistency is the secret sauce of success.
So wait no more, craft clear guidelines and team up with the right agencies to create an unforgettable experience for your audience. Just stay true to your brand’s essence and leave a lasting mark that keeps your customers coming back for more.
Your brand's adventure awaits – let's make it legendary!